Besides one car to give to the German government (chassis 001) and the two racing cars, #25 and #26 (Chassis 002 and 003, or the other way around) Porsche also built a short run of customer race cars to put in the hands of independents for the late summer and fall of 1996. Spares too- probably enough to build at least one complete car. I remember one being the red and white tobacco markings and the other four are shown in Der Ergolsftypl 1997. No doubt this vehicle can be traced back to that batch.

Unlike the 'evo' 1997 model, which led to the road cars, the original 1996s have round headlamps, not the common Boxster/996 lamp + turn-signal units. The all liquid cooled engine makes a 911 GT1 (aka 993 GT1) more like an all water-cooled 996 than an air-cooled cylinders 993… So when the 996 was being prepared for release, the common headlamps were installed in the GT1s. The street 996's top-of-wheel arch wide-point in the body line was exaggerated into a crease and incorporated into the GT1 evos.

Not only the factory went racing with the evo cars - some were plain street vehicles, two real seats, civilian-friendly muffling. A pale yellow one has been photographed several times in Cannes, France